August 05, 2024

Is "Putin's Architect" Back?


Is "Putin's Architect" Back?
Putin's Palace in Gelendzhik, Krasnoyarsk Krai, designed by Lanfranco Chirillo. Ekologicheskaya Bakhta po Sebernomu Kavkazu, Dmitry Shevchenko, Wikimedia Commons.

On August 1, Sberbank appointed Lanfranco Cirillo, the designer of the infamous "Putin's Palace," as vice president of its new construction unit. Cirillo abandoned Russia seemingly for good after 20 years there, but "Putin's architect" is rebuilding ties with the country again. 

Cirillo's name can't be found in his home country's architects' union and his degree is not valid in Russia. Yet the Venetian became known for building mansions and dachas for Moscow's oligarchs in the 1990s, including for Lukoil, Gazprom, and Novatek executives. In 2014, President Vladimir Putin granted the Italian architect Russian citizenship by decree, a rare honor.

Cirillo's name appeared in Russian newspapers in 2021, after Alexey Navalny uploaded the documentary "Putin's Palace. The Story of The World's Biggest Bribe" to YouTube. The 65-year-old acknowledged he designed the neoclassical dacha, but denied it was for Putin. The architect told Meduza the 100-million-ruble ($1.2 million) mansion was for the construction firm Stroygazconsulting, owned by Ziyad Manasir. In 2013, the Jordanian businessman was among the guests at Putin's daughter's wedding to businessman Kiril Shamalov.

After the Russian government expropriated land that the Italian architect had developed and a later argument over the construction of an Olympic sailing facility, Cirillo decided to leave Russia for the UAE. But "Putin's architect" is now resuming relations with Moscow. In a statement by Sberbank, the financial institution celebrated the appointment of Cirillo to its construction unit, citing his portfolio and "great sense of style."

You Might Also Like

Baikal, not Bali
  • July 10, 2024

Baikal, not Bali

The State Duma has banned Russian deputies and senators from traveling abroad without permission.
Nationalize It
  • March 14, 2024

Nationalize It

Over the past two years, 180 private companies have been taken over by the Russian state.
Sudden Death
  • February 18, 2024

Sudden Death

Alexei Navalny’s death was entirely expected, and completely unacceptable.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Murder and the Muse

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
Survival Russian

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955